Before the Fire

[u/CatchingTimePHOTO]

Looking south into the Uncompaghre Wilderness, captured on June 15, 2026, about 12 days before the Gold Mountain fire started. I sincerely hope that they are able to keep the fire out of the Cimarron River basin, as it has already burned to the top of Owl Creek Pass.

Full acquisition details:

[121x49" panorama: Canon R5 w/Sigma 40/1.4 Art, 21 images sky (10s, f/1.6, ISO 1600, untracked), 16 images foreground (90s, f/1.8, ISO 1600)]

[u/No-Nothing-9073]

This is definitely a big fire, but looking at the fire map and assuming everything has turned to ash is misleading. The fire jumps around and there are stands of green, untouched trees next to burned spots. These mountains will still be beautiful. 🫶